I usually listen to everything, but when a classic rock band like Deep Purple comes on I'll shun it off, thinking "Eh.......smoke on the water.......corny.

Corny? It never struck me a corny. It's a song that tells a story of an incident that really happened. There was a venue in Europe, was it Amsterdam? I don't remember, but the venue was actually burned to the ground after "some stupid" idiot shot off a flare gun in the middle of a concert..I believe it was the Mothers Of Invention. The band helped get people out of there but lost all their equipment. If I have the story right Deep Purple provided the Mothers with gear so they could continue their tour. Do I have this right or was it Deep Purple who lost the gear and the Mothers who helped? Musically I find the best way to enjoy the song is to listen to what Paice is doing.
Somebody tell the story correctly please.
Matt